Menu

Tag Archives: Pomegranate juice

See my Pomegranate Jelly post for regular pomegranate jelly and the general jelly making process. This time I turned it up a notch and incorporated jalapeños from my garden for an extra kick! I had had about 40 pomegranates, which made about 3 quarts of juice once I strained out the extra pulp that made it through the juicer.

My 40 beautiful poms –>

Juice the poms

The last time I juiced poms (see Pomegrantate Jelly post) we used cheesecloth and carefully separated the seeds (arils) then juiced them. This time we used a Jack La Lane juicer, cut both ends off of the poms, quartered them and threw them in the juicer. Including the whole pom seemed to make it have a more distinct pomegranate flavor. I think this is similar to why people zest oranges and lemons. The rind has a very strong, distinct flavor. I would use this method again. It is quicker and captures all of the pom goodness!

I recommend using a bowl under the container you are collecting juice in. This minimizes the juice wasted and helps with the mess.

Infuse the juice with jalapeño

I used my small chopper. I poured in some juice, cut up two small jalapenos and threw them in, seeds and all! I chopped for about 2 minutes. I then ran the juice through a strainer to strain the big chunks of jalapeno and seeds out. The more adventurous may want to keep the chunks. Since this was an experiment I erred on the side of caution.

For the basic process, see my Pomegrantate Jelly post. The main things to remember are add the pectin to the pom juice and stir constantly over high heat…

Add the sugar once the mixture has come to a full rolling boil that cannot be stirred down. Then, boil for one minute.

Follow the direction on the Pomegrantate Jelly post and you will end up with beautiful jars of jelly that will be a nice sweet treat to spread on toast or a biscuit on a cold winter day.

Canning and home preserving has been a lovely new venture for us. I love the fact that you can put the taste, smell and feel of a summer or fall fresh fruit or vegetable in a can to later be opened and enjoyed. It is a fabulous feeling! It is a labor of love and I love the whole process. Stay classy my friends!

I’m new to canning and due to the science involved and potential food borne illness that can result from veering from time-tested recipes, I choose to use Ball’s recipes: http://www.freshpreserving.com/recipe.aspx?r=52. I’ve included excepts from their recipe (in green) below. You will need:

We didn’t wear gloves and the poms didn’t stain our hands, but during the juicing process it definitely stained my shirt!

Juicing the Pomegranates

Juicing the Pomegranates is the most daunting task if it is your first time. Here I’ve tried explain what worked and didn’t work for us. We juiced six pomegranates from my friends’ tree. Preparing the Pomegranates (Poms):

Cut open the pom by removing the cap. Slice off the top as you would slicing off the top of a pumpkin for a jack-o-lantern. You must remove all of the seeds (arils) before juicing.

Slice down each of the yellowish membrane sections. A pomegranate is split into sections, similar to an orange. Keep that in mind when slicing the fruit into sections along the membranes.

Pull the sections apart like an orange and remove the arils. Drop the seeds into a bowl of cold water. This will make the extra membrane float which allows for further separation.

Drain the seeds by running the bowl through a colander.

Pick out any membrane that may have gotten caught with the seeds. You must remove all the membrane or the juice will be bitter.

Pour the seeds into the ricer or into a fine sieve or cheesecloth to juice them. The ricer was Tracy’s idea and it seemed to work great until it broke. I’m not sure if it was Joe’s incredible strength or the Ikea ricer’s lack of fortitude. We will never know.Cheesecloth came to the rescue and we finished juicing the poms. We were ecstatic to have 3 1/2 cups of juice!Making the Jelly

Directions:

1.) PREPARE boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.

2.) PLACE pomegranate juice in a 6- or 8-quart saucepan. Gradually stir in pectin. Add up to 1/2 tsp butter or margarine to reduce foaming, if desired. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil that can not be stirred down, over high heat, stirring constantly.

Although the jelly was pipingy hot, it set up very quickly! Filling hot jars is critical. Make sure your jars stay hot by keeping them in the dishwasher until you are ready to use them.

5.) PROCESS in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool. Check lids for seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

We ended up with enough jelly for only five of the six jars. Hmm..maybe we were a little short on juice?! I can’t wait to spread some of this pom jelly on a slice of bread while sitting by the fire reading this winter!

Thanks Kenzie for helping us document the process by taking phenomenal pictures!

Thank you Gina & Hannah for the fresh poms!

Thank you Joe & Tracy for your help making the jelly and using your kitchen. You know I love to get messy in your kitchen 😉